A big thanks to Rhodes for sponsoring this post. As always, all thoughts and opinions are my own. #Rhodesbread#completethemeal

Football is here. Fall is (almost) here. Busy school schedules and extra-curricular activities are here. And you know what all of that means? It’s once again prime season for breaking out the ol’ slow cooker!

These Slow Cooker Honey Balsamic Shredded Beef Sandwiches are my latest crock pot creation, and boy are they yummy. This recipe is as simple as popping a chuck roast into the crock pot, letting it do its thing until fall-apart tender, and then shredding the beef. Finally, stir in a quick-to-make, tangy-sweet sauce, pile the beef onto crusty rolls, and it’s time to dig in!

I love slow cooker sandwich fillings for their ease and versatility. They’re a great ready-made dinner after getting home late from a busy day. They’re perfect for parties and gatherings, since one crock pot full of meat can feed a lot of people. And they make fabulous game day or tailgating grub!

Another bonus of these Slow Cooker Honey Balsamic Shredded Beef Sandwiches is that it’s easy to keep all of the ingredients on hand in order to whip up the recipe anytime. The seasonings and sauce ingredients are standards in my pantry and fridge. I always have a chuck roast or two in the freezer. And I’ve learned to keep a couple bags of sandwich rolls in the freezer as well so that I’m not running to the store at the last minute for fresh buns!

I recently discovered Rhodes Warm N Serv Rolls and they complement these sandwiches beautifully. My family has always enjoyed Rhodes Bake N Serve Yeast Dinner Rolls — and I’ve even been known to fancy them up a bit — but the Warm N Serv line is even more convenient in that the rolls are piping hot from the oven and ready to enjoy in a matter of minutes! In fact, this meal was as simple as popping frozen Artisan French Rolls in the oven while I set the table and poured drinks. Eight minutes later we had warm, fresh sandwich rolls on which to enjoy our Slow Cooker Honey Balsamic Shredded Beef. That beats stale rolls from last week’s grocery store run anytime… 😉

And oh, the sandwiches! The beef is tender, juicy, and oozing with that sticky, zingy sauce. The Rhodes Artisan French Rolls are soft on the inside and crusty on the outside, perfect for standing up to the juices from the meat. And since these rolls are on the smaller side, they make sandwiches that are more like sliders. They’re just the right size for the little hands in our house, yet they allow everyone to scarf down as many as they want. One sandwich is ideal for a smaller appetite while several sandwiches will fill up the hungrier guys (like my 10-year-old, whose incessant hunger may explain how he recently grew an inch in six weeks?).

We’ll be enjoying Slow Cooker Honey Balsamic Shredded Beef Sandwiches a lot this fall and winter. Whether as a ready-made dinner on a busy weeknight or as a sure-to-impress recipe for a game day gathering, this crock pot sandwich filling cooks slow but disappears fast. Hope y’all love it, too!

Helpful Tips, Tricks, & Equipment

When cooking a big hunk ‘o beef in my slow cooker, I almost always choose a chuck roast. Because it’s so well-marbled, it turns tender and juicy and succulent with a long, low cooking time. Furthermore, most of the fat renders while it cooks, meaning that it’s a snap to drain it away once the meat is done. And since this beef gets shredded, it’s also easy to remove any remaining fat when I pull the beef apart. Honestly, that’s the most time-consuming part when I make this recipe — shredding the beef — because I’m meticulous about discarding every last bit of fat. 😉

Start with a 4- to 5-pound boneless chuck roast for this recipe because, again, you’ll lose some of it to the marbling. Also, depending on how big your roast is and how much marbling ultimately gets removed, you may or may not need to stir all of the sauce into the shredded beef. Add your desired amount to taste, and any leftovers may be drizzled on sandwiches before serving.

Rhode’s Warm N Serve line includes the Artisan French Rolls pictured in this post, which are non-GMO with no high-fructose corn syrup, no preservatives, and no trans fat. There are also Mini Baguettes (for larger sandwiches), Sourdough Rolls, Soft Yeast Rolls, and Whole Wheat Rolls to choose from.

Feel free to top your Slow Cooker Honey Balsamic Shredded Beef Sandwiches with cheese (melted provolone, crumbled blue cheese, get creative!), fresh lettuce leaves, or a simple slaw. The beef is also delicious on tacos or served like a pot roast on a bed of mashed potatoes!

For the beef:

For the sauce:

1/2cuphoney

1/2cupbalsamic vinegar

1cupwater

1/4cupsoy sauce

2tablespoonscornstarch

Rhodes Warm N Serv Sandwich Rolls

Instructions

Place the roast in a large slow cooker; pierce it all over with a small, sharp knife. Stir the Worcestershire sauce into the water and pour over the top of the roast. In a small bowl, combine the thyme, salt, and pepper; evenly sprinkle over the roast and rub in. Scatter the minced garlic over the top of the roast and press into the surface. Cover the slow cooker and cook on low for 8 to 10 hours, until the roast is tender.

An hour before serving, prepare the sauce. In a medium pot, whisk together the honey, balsamic, water, soy sauce, and cornstarch until the cornstarch has dissolved. Bring to a low simmer and cook, occasionally stirring, for a few minutes or until the mixture has thickened (it will continue to thicken as it cools). Remove from the heat and set aside.

Once the roast is done, remove it to a cutting board. Drain the liquids from the slow cooker and wipe out any remaining fat with paper towels (taking care not to burn yourself). Shred the beef and discard any fat. Return the shredded beef to the slow cooker, stir in your desired amount of sauce, and serve immediately (or reheat on low until just heated through). Serve on sandwich rolls with additional sauce, if desired.

Notes

Feel free to top your Slow Cooker Honey Balsamic Shredded Beef Sandwiches with cheese (melted provolone, crumbled blue cheese, get creative!), fresh lettuce leaves, or a simple slaw. The beef is also delicious on tacos or served like a pot roast on a bed of mashed potatoes!

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Great question, Meredith! Because the sauce has so much honey in it, it’s likely to burn around the edges of the slow cooker if it spends too much time in there. For deeper flavor, I’d suggest cooking the beef on low for extra time after it’s been shredded and the sauce has been stirred in. Just be sure to stir it occasionally and keep an eye out for burning around the edges. 🙂 Hope that helps!

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Hi, I’m Samantha . . .

a busy wife and tired mama of two energetic boys and a sweet little girl living in Texas. I love cooking, writing, eating queso, watching college football, and taking way too many pics of my kids. In my “spare” time, I run this food blog and I wrote a cookbook. The days are crazy but the love is plenty between the five hearts that make up our home! (click for more)